Former NFL QB Jared Lorenzen Dead At (Only) 38

Technically the site is OBESITYHELP not bariatric surgery help ... also there are forums for non surgical weight loss ...

And statistically, that's true .. at least for those persons who are at least M.O..

You lost me. Who is "everyone" ????? I have LOST weight, using NUMEROUS methods, over the past 60 years...Probably 5000 pounds, at least...

It's MAINTAINING the loss that's been the itchy part

Gina, without the context of "everyone" I don't know how to respond to your question. Let's try this on for size and see how it flies; for some folks WLS is definitely the best way to lose weight, and I've said this multiple times on this forum. However, there is also an alternative that has also proven to be effective and that is the Medically Managed Program that I outlined earlier. I know that you or the many others on this forum have never heard this because it isn't in the best interests of the surgeons to talk about it with their patients. Don't tell me I'm making false assumptions because I hear these same conversations in our clinic and they go like this "There's no money to be made in a Medically Managed Program so we "encourage" WLS because of the money we can make from it." The result is that a great many people who desperately need to lose weight will never pursue it because they've been told that the only effective way is through WLS and they don't want to submit themselves to that. They've tried all of the for-profit weight loss plans and have failed miserably so there is no reason to try. In short they've given up, and everyone of us pays the price for that lost hope. When that happens, when WL Surgeons quote a 97% failure rate among other methodologies for effectively losing and keeping weight off, they are doing many people trapped in morbid obesity a tremendous disservice, and frankly they are acting unethically when their bank account determines the best path for treatment.

Three months ago I was asked by the management of our clinic if I would be interested in allowing them to use my story in their marketing plans and I jumped on board almost before they could finish asking me. I learned yesterday that the clinic is now booking a record number of patients (their initial screenings are now booked 8 weeks out) and the vast majority of those folks are seeking the Medically Managed Program instead of surgery. I've had the opportunity to talk with some of these folks and they are all saying the same thing, my story has given them a hope they never had, and for me, that's why I wanted to be part of that program. I am very quick to tell them that they are going to have to work diligently to lose the weight and work diligently to keep it off once they have achieved their ideal weight range. It's a week by week, day by day, hour by hour, and minute by minute process and you will have to continue every day for the rest of your life, as will I.

I'm now at 100 pounds lost, with about 120 more to go, but just a few short months ago I really wasn't sure if I could lose this weight or not, but because of all of the direction I have allowed the experts to give me, I KNOW that I will lose it, and whether it takes another 1,2, or 3 years is of no consequence to me because it took me nearly 30 years to put all of this weight on, so 4 or 5 years years is nothing to me. Last July I couldn't walk around the local WalMart, or any other store for that matter, without the aid of a shopping cart, and on Sunday, June 30, I walked nearly 8 miles watching my favorite golfers compete in the US Senior Open at Notre Dame. When I started this program two years ago I couldn't walk 50 yards without having to stop and catch my breath, and this morning I completed a 1.6 mile walk in just over 33 minutes, and I'll be participating in my second 5K this coming Saturday. You may not like what I have to say, and it may well fly in the face of everything you've been told about non-surgical weight loss, and I'm okay with that. I have nothing but respect for those who have chosen that route and successfully made life changes, but I also feel strongly that my results demand your respect as well, though I don't need it to reach my goals. The whole point of what I'm saying is that there is an alternative to WLS and for those who are willing to put in the time and work necessary, the rewards are a brand new life, one that some, including myself, never thought possible, and they won't have to spend thousands of dollars out-of-pocket to reach those goals.

I hope everyone had as great a day as I had today. God bless.

First of all...congratulations on your successful weight loss.

What you seem to not hear is that many of us DID participate in a medically managed weight loss program and we lost considerable weight. What you are also not hearing is that we gained every bit of that weight back and more.

Your posts do come across as being judgmental of our choice to proceed with surgery after many failed attempts with medically supervised diet. When someone reminds you that losing weight is the easy part, but keeping it of is the real struggle, you get defensive and start telling people that you have all the answers. that your program is the only program that works, and that you will never have a failure because of this. How did you think people on a weight loss surgery forum would react to that kind of condescension? We have all failed many times with conventional dieting.

I question why you are here. This site is made up primarily of people who have already had WLS. Your approach to us in saying that there is another alternative is a moot point. Your passion for what you are doing about your weight would be better served on a site that promotes that kind of program. You could be the poster boy for them too and inspire a whole group of people to follow your lead.

Again... congrats on your weight loss...you seem to really want that credit from someone.

Also is very clueless as to what the various WLS programs ARE -- seems to think that it's just cutting and stitching (which we know happens but isn't the gold standard) but I had and continue to have everything outlined under the "very special Medically Manged" program as part of my WLS program -- including but not limited to the super special highly educated "RD not nutritionist", "excercise physiologist not trainer." The weight loss is great and it seems like the required changes and adherence have been fully internalized which is amazing and to be commended but the disdain, dismissiveness and outright rudeness to everyone that isn't doing the EXACT same thing is sad.

He also thinks we're totally clueless about what his program entails. Apparently, all we've ever tried is Medically Managed with shakes and pre-packaged meals, as opposed to his medically managed (no caps) behavior-modification program. When nobody on this whole thread has mentioned shakes!

I've never drunk a protein shake in my life lol!

Your post has gone completely over his head. Time to stop wasting your time with this one. :-/